MedAustron is an Ion Therapy Center located in Wiener Neustadt in Austria. This center provides proton and carbon ion therapies to oncology patients.

Undergoing cancer treatment with daily sessions for the duration of 3 to 7 weeks is a strenuous process for patients. Although the beam is invisible and the patient doesn’t feel any pain, treatment rooms often resemble a very technical environment and lack a comfortable atmosphere.

Not so at MedAustron: besides becoming a state- of-the-art center using the latest technological equipment, the center wanted to provide a welcoming and pleasant ambient surrounding, especially when it comes to the medical areas. To realize this, MedAustron reached out to the Philips Healthcare Experience Solutions team for advice on how to address this issue. Philips offered healthcare experience solutions for a series of different spaces ranging from patient waiting rooms, changing rooms, preparation rooms, Ambient Experience CT, MR and PET CT rooms and most significantly, the treatment rooms themselves.

Together with the dedicated work of the Philips team, we accomplished to create a unique
and relaxing atmosphere for our patients.”

Our approach

Philips was invited to look into the daily experiences of patients and staff and to provide an experience design concept for the entire facility.

Together with the center’s key stakeholders, a team of experts used Philips’ unique methodology: a collaborative, research based and multi-disciplinary approach. Key to success was the consideration of the needs, hopes, anxieties, concerns and interaction of patients, family and staff. Each relevant stakeholder in the care path was evaluated.

Insights in the patient and staff journeys were prioritized and translated into customized, meaningful environments that can enhance the quality of care, improve patient satisfaction, reduce patient stress, increase productivity and optimize workflow.

We offered solutions for various spaces including waiting rooms, Ambient Experience CT, MR, PET/CR room and all three therapy rooms.

Results

MedAustron started treating patients with proton therapy in December 2016. While two treatment rooms are currently in operation for patient treatments using protons, the center continues to commission carbon ions and missing beamlines step-by-step until 2020. In full operation, MedAustron can treat about 1.000 patients with ion therapy annually.

Meet our team

Werner and his team help hospitals and healthcare systems develop people-centric care solutions to help improve the quality of care delivery. His expertise spans the fields of research, design innovation, new business development, and marketing. Werner has previous experience as a strategic innovation consultant, conducting design innovation programs. He is an acclaimed speaker at healthcare conferences on the topics of healthcare design, people-centric environments, as well as enhancing the patient, family, and staff experience. Werner holds a master's of economics with a specialization in marketing, economic psychology, and sociology.

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